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moonxjoon · 6 years ago

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How Can I Help You? | chapter 1

one | two

Pairing: HueningKai x barista!Reader

Rating: PG

Word Count: 2k

Synopsis: Working at the local cafe in town is normally a tiresome day job, until you meet a particularly fascinating young guy who frequents your shop more and more often than usual.

A/N: Requests Open~

You clutched your peacoat flush to your chest, forcing out a deep breath which brought forth a wisp of clouded air that you could see infringing on the cold air. Your tired breaths slowed when you finally halted your semi-jog, arriving at the teal-colored door of the local corner coffee house you were currently working at on your days off from university classes.

The street adjacent to the building was already saturated with early morning commuters, public transportation bussing, and the occasional biker or runner. It was a raucous, lively Monday morning in the midst of the brisk winter months, teetering on the edge of springtime (which was promised to come sooner rather than later as a result of an inquisitive rodent spotting its shadow a few weeks prior).

You used your boss’s key to unlock the hackneyed door, swinging it open to let in a gust of sharp, biting air throughout the settled shop. Your entire body loosened up when you shut the door behind you and made your way behind the counter to get ready for opening.

You pulled off your scarf and coat, hanging it on the coat rack situated at the front entrance. “Morning!” You said to yourself and perhaps even the shop itself.

Your morning opening routine involved opening blinds, cleaning the espresso machines, and prepping the pastry and snack counter. After your first hand duties were completed, you checked the clock on the wall to see that it was still 6:43, seventeen minutes before opening. You instinctively yawned to yourself, as you had gotten less than adequate sleep the night prior. You had finished up two research papers and an observational lab report for the following week, knowing you would barely have enough time to complete the assignments during your work days. Sluggishly wandering into the back room where breaks and team meetings were commonly held, you grabbed the chalkboard sign used to entice outside customers to stop in and grab a quick cup of joe before starting their day. You wiped it clean and meticulously calligraphed an eye-catching, curtailed version of the store’s menu, highlighting new seasonal drinks and different types of house-made patisseries.

Wearing nothing but your shop uniform and apron, you braced yourself as you opened the front door, the bitter coldness immediately intruding through your clothing. You propped the A-framed sign at the very front of the shop, repositioning it more than needed to satisfy your perfectionist psyche as well as making sure it didn't take up too much space on the footpath for passers-by. Just as you finished setting up the sign, an incoming cry triggered your fight-or-flight response, making you jump.

“S’cuse me!” You heard the voice, envoking you to spin around on your heel to see where the exclamation came from. At the very last second, as a blue blur flashed before your eyes, your legs that were stuck at the entrance of your shop finally decided to move for you. You narrowly evaded the biker, who was traveling downhill on the sidewalk and jerkily dodging people and uneven pavement bumps. You watched as he spun around on his seat, quickly waving to you and not exactly abiding by the biker rules of the road. “Sorry bout that!”

Your racing heart slowed enough to take note of the boy on the bike. His bright aqua hair blew messily in the wind. His back was adorned in a beige jacket and dark pants, and his dark blue tie fluttered over his shoulder, flapping wildly from his breakneck riding.

“There’s a bike lane for a reason!” You called back to him, watching precariously as he narrowly avoided other pedestrians. Knowing he couldn’t hear you anyway, you rolled your eyes and made your way back into the warmth of your brewhouse dwelling.

Laidback rhythms and soft melodies mixed with a cacophony of brewing machines filled the shop as you prepared orders for the now growing line of customers waiting for their daily dose of caffeine and sugar. The first hours of the morning were spent operating alone, as your other coworker called in about fifteen minutes prior to opening that she would be coming into work late. Typical, you thought, as you poured another medium vanilla chai latte and handed it to a young woman, too busy talking on her phone to even say ‘thank you’.

Your brow began to sweat a tad while you prepared espresso after latte after macchiato after cappuccino. After the dozenth cup was served to the last patron in line and no one else needed to be helped, you took a deep breath and used the end of your apron to wipe away the excess perspiration that had collected at the apex of your forehead. Even though it felt like nearly below freezing outside, the whirring machines and scalding drink-making process made the small shop exceedingly sweltering.

You propped your bottom on the edge of the cashier counter and promptly took out your phone for a quick break. You opened your instagram app and liked a few aesthetically pleasing dorm photos on your explore page. Just as you were admiring a particular picture of a minimalistic yet fashionably tasteful flat arrangement (silently wishing you had the money to make your own room look like that), you heard the telltale ring of the doorbell, signalling there was another customer that needed to be tended to. You sighed to yourself and slipped your phone into your apron pocket, turning to face the cash register, ready to take yet another overly complex order.

“Hi, how can I help you?-” you casually glanced up to the person, but your words caught in your throat as you made eye contact. Standing before you was a towering young man who you guessed was around you age just by his youthfulness. Soft chocolate-caramel locks were splayed across his forehead, leading down towards even darker mocha-colored irises. His hair and eye color starkly contrasted to his pretty much flawless milky skin tone. Before his lips even parted to say a word, you immediately deducted that he was one of the cutest guys you’d ever laid eyes on.

“Good morning.” He said. With a sharp intake of air, your teeth unconsciously grabbed onto the sides of your cheeks, which were now progressing into a darker and darker shade of pink. You noticed his lips as he spoke; they were a deep cherry color, almost matching his own cheeks. You suspected this was because of the chilly outdoor weather, unlike your own blood flowing to your face due to the fact you were staring up at an incredibly good-looking guy.

The boys eyes tilted upwards to the menu hanging just above your head before returning back to your unbreaking gaze. “I’ve never been here before, mind if I ask what you recommend?” His voice was alluring in a way and you focused on every word as it came out. You blinked a few times, hearing those particular words strung in that order, but not entirely processing them. When an uncomfortable and unnecessary amount of time passed between him asking and you answering, your brain forced out words by itself, resulting in a clumsy and uncalculated response.

“Uhm, I’m sorry, what was that?” you asked, shaking your head and breaking eye contact which was also starting to get weird. You stared at the buttons on the register, now completely and utterly flustered. You inwardly scolded yourself for making yourself look like a fool. It was one thing if it was any other customer, but you had to be caught off guard by a boy- lord knows how inept you are at holding a conversation with a guy that you find even minimally cute.

“It’s alright. I was just wondering what you think is good here. I don’t really drink coffee, but I need the caffeine to keep me up for today. Being back from break sucks.” The brunette laughed slightly to himself- god, even his giggle was cute.

You held your grip on the sides of the register, praying you wouldn’t continue to make yourself look like a newbie at her job. Come on, just pretend he's just a normal patron, because that’s all he is. Go about your coffee schpeal and recommend the classics.

You glanced back up at the boy, who was still staring at you with the most pleasant, friendly smile.

Through your peripherals, you noticed his apparel. It looked strangely familiar, like the clothing was seen somewhere before in the inner recesses of your mind. You had a realization that the tan single-breasted suit with light blue trim was the exact same uniform worn by the guy that nearly ran you over this morning.

You swallowed hard and forced yourself to act like a normal person, not letting some random captivating dude distract you from your job. “Oh, well we still have our holiday drinks in season; there's our peppermint cappuccino, gingerbread latte, mocha praline swirl...hot chocolate?” You tried, countering his smile with a homely smirk.

His hand came up and gingerly caressed the back of his neck, his eyes once again scanning the board behind you. “Hm, what’s your favorite here?” he queried, making the settling blood in your face heat up once again.

Your mouth opened once, then twice, both times no words coming out. On the third try, your vocal cords finally decided to work. “Oh, that’s a hard question, I’m like a coffee fiend.” The painful grasp on the register slowly eased when to your surprise, the same chuckle from before erupted from his chest. “I’d recommend everything, but one of my go-to’s is our cinnamon dolce latte with brown sugar cinnamon and caramel.” you said quickly, now hyper-aware of your awkward demeanor.

He nodded his head, making his hair bounce up and down playfully over his face. “Alright, I’ll have a small cinnamon dolce, in that case.” You noticed that not once did his smile leave his face. Your mouth perked up, enjoying your short chat. “Got it. That’ll be $3.15.” He reached into his satchel that was slung over his shoulder and pulled out a wallet, handing you a crisp five dollar bill. While he was doing that you took the time to check out his lapel, which had an emblem patch stitched on his front pocket. The black embroidered crest was adorned with gold trimming; woven in were three tri-colored stars of yellow, green, and blue.

Before he had a chance to notice your subtle appraisal, you accepted his currency, brushing his slender fingers in the process. The innocent and simple gesture made your own fingers tingle as they came into contact with foreign skin. His fingertips were chilled as your clammy hands met his, making goosebumps form over your wrist and up your arm. Suddenly your legs were locked in place, yet all the while felt formless and weak.

“Wh-what’s the name for the order?” you asked and silently berated yourself for sounding so automatic yet pathetic at the same time.

“Huening Kai. But you can just put Kai.” Another beaming grin crossed his face as he wiped away a stray piece of hair hanging in front of his eye. It looks so smooth and soft, you thought. Your hands suddenly felt the need to find purchase in his locks, just to see how the mop of shiny brown hair would feel under your touch. You’re repulsive! What is wrong with you? Get your mind out of the gutter! Your mind shouted at you, bringing you back to reality once again.

“Kai. Got it.” You grabbed a cup and a magic marker, writing out the name as neatly as possible. An unexpected wave of confidence came over you before you could stop your lips from speaking you spat out, “Nice name, Huening Kai. Very pretty.” You bite your tongue, immediately regretting your words. Just as you were about to explain yourself that you didn't mean for that to sound weird or come across as creepy, your head shot up to see that his expression changed to a softer simper. His head tilted a bit, like a puppy studying it’s owners face in confusion.

“Thank you, I don't get too many compliments on my name. I appreciate it…” His gaze trailed down from your eyes to your collarbone and right above your breast. He leaned forward over the counter, examining you. A warm heat followed his eyes, making the room feel even hotter than before. “Y/N. Hm, I like yours, too. It fits you.” He said and you momentarily thought he was a mind-reader, until you realized he was studying your name tag attached to your shirt.

You uncontrollably erupted in a giggle, exalted by his compliment. “Thanks, I used to hate it, but I guess I don’t mind it anymore.”

You were kicked back into gear when you peered behind the boy and saw more people had made their way into the shop and were waiting for their orders to be taken. “Your drink will be right out, Kai.” You replied and spun around to your workstation so he wouldn’t notice the redness permeating across your face.

As you made his drink, you made sure to take special care in not messing up the simple order, as you had made numerous drinks in your time at the shop; you haven't had a single customer complain about any of your beverages thus far, so this one shouldn’t be any exception.

The brew was ready, and you took your time making sure the whipped topping was laid expertly and not overflowing. You pressed the lid shut and ensured not a single drop of coffee spilled. “Kai?” you stepped up to the counter at the other end of your station, seeing him waiting patiently and scrolling through his phone. When his name was called, he instantly perked up and smiled. “That was quick!” he exclaimed, slipping his phone into his trouser pocket in exchange for his drink.

Your hands skimmed each other once again, the same exact warm feeling shooting up your arm like before. Ignoring it this time, you gestured to the line of people gathering at the front of the store. “I gotta be. Coffee making pays surprisingly well, can’t afford to be slow.”

Your statement was ironic, as these past few minutes felt like an eternity, just being in the presence of this stranger.

He took a slow sip of the latte as you spoke. You were surprised when his eyes grew wide, and panicked as the thought crossed your mind that you prepared the wrong recipe or maybe he burned his tongue. You should’ve warned him it’d be scalding hot!

“Wow. You’re pretty good at your craft, not gonna lie!” His overly charming grin came back once again, which made you wonder how his cheeks weren’t sore yet. Before you could thank him, he started making his way to the door, waving as he made long strides to the exit. “Thanks, Y/N. I'll leave you to your work now, gotta get to class soon, too.”

Your encounter was over too soon, and you felt a certain tug at your chest when he pressed his fingers to the glass paneling of the door. “See you around!” He shouted over the heads of the customers queued up at the register. And just like that, the pretty boy Kai was gone. “See you!” You tried to call out, but it was too late. The door shut and from the storefront windows you could see the tousled chocolate locks flying haphazardly in the outdoor wind, until he rounded the corner and disappeared from sight.

Your heart had slowed to a regular beat, and you let out a disappointed sigh. You remembered your other patrons and you speedily went back to your post and second nature kicked in and your day continued normally.

“Sorry for the wait, staff is short today.” You apologize to the man standing before you, the bags under his eyes and vitriolic frown indicating he was not in the mood to wait any longer than he had to.

He has to be back sometime. You thought and mindlessly typed away the order for each customer, switching back and forth from brewing and the register. He must go to the same academy as the other dude from this morning. You recollected the blue-haired boy that donned the same uniform as Kai. Damn, I kinda hope he comes back.

It wasn't typical of you to think about someone so strongly after having just met them, but for some reason, this guy lingered around your thoughts. From his tall figure to the way he said your name to his cheeky smile and laugh and even to his cold fingers. You scolded yourself for what seemed like the hundredth time for letting a simple crush affect you so.

You forced out a frustrated huff as your thoughts got the better of your judgement and you accidentally switched up two girls’ orders, earning you a few disgruntled remarks about not doing your job right and an eye roll. When the day couldn't seem to last any longer, you checked out the clock to see if your shift was almost over. 7:36. Lovely…

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vladamsandler · 9 years ago

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Inspired by this post. Word count: 2276

The recent chinook has begun to pass and Robbie can feel the cold in his joints as he stirs sugar into his morning coffee. He glumly peers out the window over the rim of his mug at the layer of fresh snow covering the backyard. The temperature dipped again in the night. Single negative digits was as good as it ever got in wintertime here, appearing when warm winds slide down the nearby mountain range to alleviate the normally dry, biting cold of LazyTown's mid-winter months. A glance at an app on his phone confirms that the high today was going to be -12C and Robbie quietly groans to himself, trying to decide if bundling up and walking to work would be less of a hassle than digging out his car with the snow shovel and ice scraper again.

He crosses the foyer to check the hall closet for the scraper and makes a double-take out the window. His front walk and the sidewalk in front of his house appears to have already been cleared of snow. Did someone shovel for him? He checks his watch.

07:52

"What kind of maniac..." he mutters as he sets his coffee on the entrance table and opens the door for a closer investigation of his front yard.

He almost doesn't notice it at first, a small blue post-it stuck to front door. Scrunching his shoulders up at the air nipping his skin through his heavy sweater and plaid button-up, Robbie scowls at the offending note on his property. He snatches the slip of paper and shuts the door, retreating back into the warmth of the kitchen.

Have a nice day! :-}) -S

Robbie squints at the note suspiciously. Who is S? And who draws smiley faces with a mustache?? Robbie is deeply disturbed. He’s no stranger to random acts of kindness, you couldn't be living in this good-for-nothing town, but rarely were such actions aimed him. He might as well be the villain of his neighborhood. He didn't interact with his neighbors often, but often enough for most of them to steer clear of the grouchy man on a regular basis.

Glowering at the little mustachioed face, Robbie tries to remember if anyone in the neighborhood has a name that begins with S. He can only vaguely recall overhearing the couple living next door arguing about different moving companies a couple weeks ago. He has somewhat of a penchant for spying on the people in his neighborhood, but that was becoming more difficult this time of year when families stayed inside and kept their doors and windows firmly shut to keep the warmth from escaping their homes.

He finishes his coffee and checks his watch again. He's spent far too much time pondering the mysterious note and was now nearly late for work. He crumples the note and stuffs it in his pocket. Whatever, he has more important things to worry about than friendly people wasting their time for no good reason. Robbie only worries about himself, as it ought to be.

A few days following this incident, Robbie wakes one morning from a fitful sleep to see his alarm has yet to go off. He briefly considers rolling over and trying to capture just a few more Z's before he has to start getting ready for work when he hears it. A sort of rhythmic scraping sound, coming from outside. He peers out from under his fluffy orange comforter through the crack in his bedroom curtain. It had snowed again in the night, the mysterious S must be outside shoveling again!

Robbie rolls out of bed, quickly wraps his robe around himself and stuffs his feet into his furry orange slippers. He trudges to the front door, stopping to turn his coffee machine on in the kitchen, and checks out his front window for the irritating good-samaritan. Sure enough, his front walk has been cleared of the fresh snow again and Robbie can see a figure just finishing up the sidewalk in front of his house. He checks the clock on the microwave through the doorway to the kitchen.

06:43

With irritation from being awake at this god forsaken hour for no good reason and from not having his coffee yet, Robbie yanks open the front door to give the trespasser a piece of his mind.

"You know I have a shovel of my own, I didn't ask for any favors from some stranger!" he barks at the figure, now seen clearly than through a frosty window. The mysterious shoveler appears to be a stocky young man in a puffy blue coat with white and black stripes down the sides, and a matching scarf and hat. At the sound of the door and his exclamation, the man whips his head in Robbie's direction with wide eyes, frozen with shovel in hand. Now with a good look at his face, Robbie's first impression is that the man is actually about same age as him, just appearing younger due to his height and athletic vigor shoveling.

His second impression is that the man is ...incredibly handsome. Robbie himself freezes up as the man offers a lopsided smile and approaches his front door.

"Hi! I'm Sportacus, I just moved in next door about a week or so ago. It's nice to finally meet you!"

Robbie's mind is blank. He glances nervously down at the mittened-hand extended to him and tries to remember how speech works in the face of such a beautiful smile.

"Um," Sportacus withdraws his hand awkwardly, "I took care of shoveling your walkway for you, I hope you don't mind." He keeps smiling sweetly up at Robbie, eyebrows pinching up slowly in confusion at his silence.

Robbie blinks a couple times and clears his throat. "Agh, yes, hi. I'm Robbie. Thanks for... clearing the snow for me." He clears his throat again. "This time and last time. It's really unnecessary."

"Oh it's no trouble! I kind of enjoy it actually. The exercise wakes me up."

Robbie blushes at the sound of the other man's foreign accent. He was always a sucker for cute accents.

"Yes, well, I'm sure you have better things to be doing at this time of the morning than doubling your work shoveling."

"It's alright, really, I'm usually awake at this time anyway. I find it difficult to sleep past 6AM. Besides, it's better to shovel the snow when it's fresh than after it becomes compacted." Sportacus smiles again and Robbie watches his strangely pointed mustache jostle with the movement. It was adorable? Also explains the smiley-face on the note.

But Robbie shudders at thought of waking up at 6AM every morning. This Sportacus really is some sort of maniac.

"Uhh, right. Well, again, it's really uncalled for. But if you enjoy it so much the least I can do is offer you something in repayment." Robbie begins to blush again and concentrates so as not to stumble his words. "Perhaps you'd be up for a cup of coffee? I just brewed a fresh pot."

Sportacus somehow smiles even bigger and his eyes sparkle with something Robbie can't place.

"That sounds lovely! Thank you very much!"

Sportacus leans his shovel gently against the railing on the porch and steps inside as Robbie walks back into the kitchen. As Sportacus carefully tries to remove his boots without tracking mud in the foyer, Robbie nervously checks his reflection in the microwave door. With butterflies in his stomach he licks his fingers and quickly tries to smooth his bedhead curls into something a little more presentable and grabs two mugs from the cupboard.

Sportacus enters the kitchen holding his coat, hat, and scarf in his arms as he politely admires the inside of his neighbor's quaint, if not a little messy, home.

Robbie turns around with the sugar dispenser in his hand, but his question dies in his throat when he looks as the other man. It was so strange to see another person in his home after isolating himself from other people for so long, a handsome gentleman no less. Robbie blushes again for umpteenth time as he takes in Sportacus' soft golden curls and broad, muscled shoulders under a white and blue t-shirt. Sportacus' cheeks and nose are flushed, presumably from the cold outside and the physical exertion of shoveling. He still has that stupid smile on his face, Robbie thinks as he realizes he missed whatever Sportacus just said.

"Um, I'm sorry?" Robbie squeaks bashfully.

"I said no sugar for me please. I take my coffee black." Sportacus smiles at Robbie's nervousness. Hopefully his own blush wasn't showing. He's been incredibly curious about his next-door neighbor after going a week without having the opportunity to meet him. He'd been hoping to make a good impression by helping him with the shoveling, but after meeting the tall, lovely man, Sportacus quietly resolves to shovel Robbie's walkway every snowfall from then on.

"Right." Robbie sets the sugar dispenser back down on the counter. "You can just throw those things anywhere." He grabs the two mugs and moves toward the table.

Sportacus stuffs his hat and scarf in the coat pockets and hangs the jacket on the back of one of the chairs at the table. He sits down with Robbie and pulls his mug closer. The two men both quietly sip their coffee together for a minute or so in silence.

"So how's-"

"Thanks again for-"

They stop talking at the same time and blush at each other for a pained second. Sportacus breaks the tension, "You first."

"Um, I was just going to say thanks again for shoveling. This weather can be a real pain in the neck sometimes."

"It's my pleasure, Robbie. Thanks for the coffee, it's delicious."

"Hm," Robbie hums into his mug. What is he even doing? Why did he invite a stranger into his home just minutes after meeting him? What happened worrying only for himself? Sportacus' quiet voice breaks Robbie from his thoughts.

"I actually like this kind of weather, it reminds me of home. My daughter too. She's probably already up making a snowman in our front yard as we speak." Sportacus chuckles nervously as he looks down at the table. He knows mentioning his daughter always seems to scare people off. He's found it best to bring her up sooner rather than later when talking to someone he's interested in, in case they consider her too much baggage and lose interest off the bat.

"Where's home?"

"Reykjavik," Sportacus smiles, relieved.

"Oh, I thought your accent sounded familiar. My mother is from Iceland." Robbie begins to relax, realizing that he's actually enjoying the conversation now that he's had his morning coffee.

"Really? That's wonderful! Getur þú talað íslensku??" Sportacus finds himself leaning forward in his chair, suddenly even more enthralled by Robbie than he was before.

Robbie smiles shyly. "Um, not really. I used to a little bit. I can only understand it - if it's spoken slowly."

"You're amazing," Sportacus says softly.

Robbie blushes furiously and breaks eye contact. "So... what brings you and, uhh, your family to LazyTown?"

Sportacus' face drops and he slowly leans back in his chair. He takes another sip before responding carefully. "It's... just me and Stephanie now. We needed... a new start. After..."

He trails off, deep in thought. Robbie suddenly has a horrible feeling he's just stepped on some sort of emotional landmine.

"I'm sorry."

Sportacus glances up, "Hm? Oh, it's alright," he offers a small smile, "That's all in the past now."

They sip at the rest of their coffee for another few minutes, but Robbie can only taste his own foot. He glances at his watch as he finishes his cup.

"Ah well, I should start getting ready for work soon."

"Oh, of course!" Sportacus tips what's left of his drink back quickly. "This was very nice Robbie, thanks again for the coffee," he smiles brightly up at Robbie as they stand together.

"Anytime Sportacus," Robbie replies clumsily, caught off guard again by his dazzling smile.

"Be careful, I may take you up on that," Sportacus smirks as he slides his coat back on.

Robbie tucks his chin, smiles, and blushes once again, managing to place the mugs in the sink without breaking anything.

They move into the foyer together and after Sportacus quickly ties his boots, Robbie opens the front door for him. On the porch, Sportacus grabs his snow shovel and turns around thinking there's more he has to say, but can't figure out how to word his feelings.

"I like your slippers," he eventually remarks, lamely.

"Um," Robbie quickly glances downward and smiles timidly, "hah, thanks. Perhaps next time I can try to be properly dressed." He looks back up to see that nameless sparkle in Sportacus' eyes again.

"Next time," he smiles warmly at Robbie.

Robbie watches the other man make his way down the cleared path and turn towards his house. He sees a small snowman wearing a pink knit hat in Sportacus' yard and hears a young girl laughing at something Sportacus says. Robbie gently closes the door with a distracted smile. Next time.

A couple days later Robbie wakes to his alarm blaring. Another restless night. He trudges to the kitchen like a zombie to turn on the coffee machine. He checks the temperature on his phone.

-17C

He groans and looks up at the ceiling, wondering if he could induce the next chinook through sheer willpower alone.

He prepares for work quickly, but seems to be running late again as he runs out the door, ice scraper in hand. However, just as he's finished locking the door he notices another blue post-it in front of him. Robbie grabs the note and turns around, realizing belatedly there had been a heavy snowfall that night and the walkway and sidewalk in front of his house had already been cleared once again. He stares down at the note with a half-smile and small butterflies in his stomach.

XXX-XXX-XXXX

Next time? :-}) -S

#BE KIND THIS IS MY FIRST FANFICTION EVER #I'm basing a lot of the weather stuff on what I know/experience #apparently chinooks are unique to the particular part of the world I live in??#I guess just imagine LazyTown is in western Canada #disclaimer: the Icelandic is straight from Google Translate #btw the X's are supposed to be a phone number... if that wasn't clear #*covers face* this is so fluffy I thought I was going to get a cavity writing this #sportarobbie #lazytown #LAZY TOWN MEMES #sportacus #robbie rotten #rachartrek

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mikeyd1986 · 6 years ago

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN 2020 + The Veronicas @ AO Live Stage, January 2020

Today could have potentially turned into a massive disaster with the discovery of my recent Medicare rebate claim getting rejected this morning. The letter I received from Medicare read “We received your claim for Medicare benefits. There are no benefits to be paid for the claim for the following reasons...Reason code 141 - No benefit payable for services performed by this provider.” I was gobsmacked and confused by this information as nothing was fully explained to me plus I thought I ended everything correctly into the mygov claim form.

Mum suggested a trip down to our local Centrelink / Medicare office in Cranbourne. It turned out to be huge mistake as a) it was packed to the rafters with other customers b) the woman servicing me was a useless cow and made me feel more agitated. At this point I figured that I typed something wrong on the claim form or was missed something. Then I approached my counselor Judie via text message for answers as i was getting stressed out and at the end of my rope. Thankfully after looking into it, she discovered that my GP wrote the wrong provider number on the invoice. So now it should hopefully get resolved!

I think my stress and conflicting thoughts on the problem were trying hard to ruin my day. It’s crap that really I shouldn’t have to be dealing with. But in this situation I’m in with my new counselor, I have to figure out the Medicare claims process myself and hope tat I don’t mess it up. It’s a very unforgiving systems through mygov which if you fail to provide all the information or type something incorrectly on the claim form, you’re basically screwed! And so I was ruminating on this bullshit all morning and I hoped that attending the Australian Open this afternoon would help giving me some positive distractions.

When Mum and I arrived at Flinders Street station just after 3pm, my energy levels suddenly plummeted through the floor! I was clearly not quite feeling 100%. I needed to sit down again. MUM TO THE RESCUE! She bought me a bottle of water and an apple cake to share. I couldn’t help feeling like a burden though. I had so much anticipation about going to the Australian Open today and yet my stress, fatigue and anxiety were making it very difficult.

We ended up catching a tram to Collins Street then walking towards Elizabeth Street and dropping into The Block Arcade. There was a massive group of people lining up to get into the very popular Hopetoun Tea Rooms. But Mum needed to buy a special birthday card for her sister’s 50th birthday coming up at Card & Caboodle! Next we had coffee together whilst admiring The Dr. Seuss (Cat In The Hat) art collection in front of us. We also got to witness the Royal English clock chime indicating that it was now 4 o’clock!

Fatigue was trying hard to bring me down again but I was determined to stay awake and focused. Eventually the buzzing energy from my coffee began flooding through my body as the peak hour crowds were building on the streets of Melbourne. I was trying my best not to bump into anyone as we navigated down Collins and Swanston Streets but it wasn’t easy.

After we arrived at Flinders Street, we discovered that tram number 70 can take us directly to Rod Laver Arena. They had a fun and amusing recording playing on the tram which informed us of he three tram stops available that are relevant to the Australian Open. After finding the Garden Square entrance, it was a little misleading and confronting working out where to lineup as a Grounds Pass ticket holder. We went through the usual bag checking, wand body scan and ticket checks before finally entering inside the Australian Open.

Being our first time at the Australian Open, there was a lot to take in and process. After grabbing a map from the information desk, I noticed that the layout resembled a village which included the large arenas (Melbourne Arena, Rod Lave Arena, Margaret Court Arena) plus retail shops like Adidas and Chemist Warehouse, various food outlets, several sunscreen lotion and hydration stations, the showcourts practice village, AO Ballpark and AO Live Stage.

Inside the AO Gift Shop, Mum and I were approached by no less than six young salespeople with the typical polite questions “Can I help you? Are you looking for anything in particular? Do you need any help?” Not that I can blame them for doing their jobs and what they had been trained to do but it was a little overbearing considering we were literally just browsing the shelves. I did end up buying myself an official Australian Open shopping bag plus a pen and later on a program on the event. Being our first time ever at an Australian Open, I really didn’t want to walk away from the event empty handed.

Next we decided to watch one of the tennis matches that was in progress! We asked a young girl named Sarah to help find our way towards the showcourts. Eventually, we made our way over to showcourt 19 and sat down in the stands. It was Andrey Rublev from Russia taking on Yuichi Sugita of Japan. There was a loud cheersquad in the back cheering and applauding every time Sugita won a point. It was actually quite funny and entertaining in a way. I was just thankful that we got to see some tennis action. https://www.atptour.com/en/news/rublev-sugita-2020-australian-open-second-round

After grabbing something to eat at one of the food outlets inside Rod Laver Arena (super expensive mind you), it was finally time to make our way towards the Live Stage where The Veronicas will be performing! We did get a little lost getting there but eventually we were heading in the right direction. The one thing we didn’t anticipate was how long the walk would be, especially with the dozens of tennis fans you have to navigate around also.

When we arrived at the live stage, it was already packed and crowded. We were very lucky to find a couple of spare seats to sit on.

THE VERONICAS put on a very nostalgic and entertaining 45 minute performance, even though they did start a little late. They performed a mixture of earlier songs plus a couple of more recent tracks. Even when the dark overcast clouds were rolling in and the temperature dropped, it certainly didn’t dampen the spirits of the audience who were singing and dancing along! I was so glad that I was able to finally see them live on stage. It was definitely worth it! Set List: Take Me On The Floor, Everything I’m Not, Hook Me Up, You Ruin Me, Ugly, In My Blood, Mother Mother, 4ever, If You Love Someone and Untouched (Please stand for the national anthem!).

Here are some tips if you ever plan on going to the Australian Open in the future:

Pack For All Seasons - Melbourne’s weather forecast can be very deceiving from strong gusty winds to showers to overcast and humid! So be sure to pack a raincoat, poncho, jumper, umbrella, a hat, sunglasses, beanie and scarf.

Bring Extra Money - The food and drinks at the Australian Open are all overpriced and very expensive (e.g. ice-creams $6.50, water $5.00, small tray of fish & chips $12.80). Be sure to bring loose change plus have money on your eftpos cards ready to go!

Do Your Homework - Make sure you check out the Australian Open website, download the app onto your phone, look up the map of the area plus any train and tram timetables you may need to get to the Australian Open! https://ausopen.com/

Plan Your Day - As Mum and I quickly discovered, it’s practically IMPOSSIBLE to fit everything into your schedule if you only have 2 or 3 hours! Unfortunately we missed out on seeing the ANZ Hot Shots and didn’t make it to the AO Ball Park in time! You really need to attend the Australian Open from 10am if you really want to make the day out of it!

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